Exova sells labs in £18m deal

Exova group has announced plans to sell its UK and Ireland Food, Water and Pharmaceutical business, with two based in Scotland, to international life sciences company Eurofins Scientific in an £18m deal.

The sale constitutes a portfolio of 10 of its accredited laboratories, specialising in a range of chemistry and microbiological testing services, including a pharmaceuticals testing lab in Edinburgh and a water testing facility in Glasgow.

Exova’s Food, Water and Pharmaceutical business in the UK and Ireland generated revenues of around £20m in 2015.

It is expected that the sale will complete early in the third quarter of 2016.

Ian El-Mokadem, CEO of Exova Group plc, said: “The sale of our Food, Water and Pharmaceutical business in the UK and Ireland allows us to dedicate significantly more financial and management resource to growing in sectors where we can build on our market leading positions in technically demanding services such as Fire, Transportation, Aerospace, Industrials and Infrastructure related testing.”